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"Mr. Lonely"
"Mr. Lonely"
Single by Bobby Vinton
from the album Roses Are Red
B-side	"It's Better to Have Loved"
Released	16 October 1964
Recorded	February 16, 1962
Genre	Pop
Length	2:40
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Bobby Vinton, Gene Allan
Producer(s)	Bob Morgan; Arranged and conducted by Robert Mersey
Bobby Vinton singles chronology

"Mr. Lonely" is a song co-written and recorded by American singer Bobby Vinton, backed by Robert Mersey and his Orchestra. The song was first released on Vinton's 1962 album, Roses Are Red.^[2]

Background

Vinton began writing the song in the late 1950s, while serving in the Army.^[3] The lyrics describe a soldier who is sent overseas and has no communication with his home. The singer laments his condition and wishes for someone to talk with.^[4]

The single of Vinton's recording was released just as the Vietnam War was escalating and many soldiers were experiencing a similar situation.^[5] Vinton's version was noted for his sobbing emotionally during the second verse. Vinton and Gene Allan later re-teamed to compose "Coming Home Soldier", which reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1967.^[6]

Although he turned out to be Epic Records' best selling artist of the 1960s, the record company initially did not display confidence in Vinton. This song was included on his first vocal album, Roses Are Red, but it was not released as a single at that time. Vinton wanted it to be the followup to his first hit, "Roses Are Red," but Epic's executives chose the very similar "Rain Rain Go Away" instead, giving "Mr. Lonely" to Buddy Greco, whom they were grooming as their next big superstar.

Greco's version reached No. 64 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on November 10, 1962.^[7]^[8] After Vinton heard Greco's version on the radio, the executives confessed to him that they felt he was more of a musician and songwriter than a singer. However, in the following months, Vinton's continued success as a vocalist made them reconsider their position.

Many months later, when Epic gave Vinton the choice of which song should be the twelfth and final selection for his greatest-hits album, he chose "Mr. Lonely".^[9] Following its inclusion on the album, many radio disc jockeys started to play the track—particularly those who remembered Buddy Greco's version and how Vinton had been prevented from releasing it as a single.

With the song's newfound popularity came a rise in demand for Vinton's version to be released as a single. "Mr. Lonely" became one of Vinton's signature songs and a favorite with servicemen around the world. Epic subsequently built an entire album release around "Mr. Lonely" when it became a hit as a single.^[9]

In 1966, Vinton recorded a sequel in which the singer comes home safe, "Coming Home Soldier."

The Japanese radio program Jet Stream has been using Franck Pourcel's Mr. Lonely as its theme song since 1967.

The Lettermen's version is very popular in Japan. As they revived the song in 1971, although they recorded the song in 1965.

In 2024, The 8 Show released, using an increasingly distorted version of Mr. Lonely as its theme song.

Chart history

The song spent 15 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 1 on December 12, 1964,^[6] while reaching No. 3 on Billboard's Middle-Road Singles chart.^[10]^[11] In Canada, the song reached No. 1 on RPM's "Top 40 & 5" chart.^[12] The song also reached No. 2 on New Zealand's "Lever Hit Parade",^[13] No. 8 in Australia,^[14] and entered into the top 3 in South Africa.^[15]

In 1973, the song was re-released as a single, and it reached No. 24 in Flanders.^[16]

Covers and sampling

Johnny Hallyday recorded the song in French under the title "Quand revient la nuit" (1965).
Raymond Lovelock recorded the song in Italian under the title "Solo" (1965).
Akon sampled the song on his 2005 hit single "Lonely".
Angel Olsen covered the track for the Kajillionaire soundtrack (2020).
Bazzi sampled the song in his 2024 single "Still Feel Alone".

References

^ "Bobby Vinton - Mr. Lonely". Retrieved 30 May 2021.
^ ^a ^b Bobby Vinton's All-Time Greatest Hits, Varese (Vintage) Sarabande CD compilation (2003).
^ Alan Levy, "His movie got him money but no fame", Life, March 12, 1965. p. 78
^ Bobby Vinton "Mr. Lonely" OldieLyrics. Accessed October 18, 2015
^ Bob Leszczak, "Who Did It First?: Great Pop Cover Songs and Their Original Artists", Rowman & Littlefield, Mar 13, 2014. p. 134
^ ^a ^b Bobby Vinton - Chart History - The Hot 100, Billboard.com. Accessed July 28, 2016.
^ Buddy Greco - Chart History - The Hot 100, Billboard.com. Accessed October 16, 2015
^ "Bobby Vinton - Rain Rain Go Away (Stereo)". YouTube. 2014-08-27. Archived from the original on 2017-01-29. Retrieved 2017-06-04.
^ ^a ^b "Bobby Vinton - Mr Lonely (Stereo)". YouTube. 2016-01-02. Archived from the original on 2022-03-07. Retrieved 2017-06-04.
^ Bobby Vinton - Chart History - Adult Contemporary, Billboard.com. Accessed October 16, 2015
^ "Middle-Road Singles", Billboard, November 21, 1964. p. 33. Accessed October 16, 2015
^ "Top 40 & 5", RPM Weekly, Volume 2, Ed. 16, December 14, 1964. Accessed October 16, 2015
^ "Lever Hit Parade" 21-Jan-1965 Archived 2022-03-07 at the Wayback Machine, Flavour of New Zealand. Accessed October 17, 2015
^ "Hits of the World", Billboard, January 30, 1965. p. 20. Accessed October 17, 2015
^ "Hits of the World", Billboard, April 24, 1965. p. 22. Accessed October 17, 2015
^ Bobby Vinton - Mr. Lonely, Ultratop. Accessed October 17, 2015